


Campaign Trail

by Rakshi



Category: Lord of the Rings RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2011-12-04
Updated: 2011-12-04
Packaged: 2017-10-26 21:53:51
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,131
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/288310
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rakshi/pseuds/Rakshi
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sean's campaigning for Hillary Clinton and gets carried away.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Campaign Trail

Elijah wandered slowly through the room looking around searchingly. Then, obviously not finding what he sought, he spun on his heel, his handsome face darkening with a rare scowl, and walked quickly to the bar. “Where is he?” he demanded.

Mackenzie Astin shrugged. “Dunno.”

“Mack, you do know! Where is he?”

Mackenzie sighed. “Let me get you a fresh beer.” He rummaged behind the bar for a moment, then re-emerged, beer in hand. “Here,” he held the bottle toward Elijah.

Elijah peered at him for a moment then fell onto a barstool and set his half-empty bottle down. As he slowly took the fresh beer from Mackenzie’s outstretched hand he shook his head. “If you think this will pacify me – you’re nuts.”

Mack sighed. “Elijah, he went outside awhile ago. He told me he wanted to be alone and to keep my fucking mouth shut about where he was headed. What do you want from me? He’s my big brother. He’ll beat me up if I rat him out!”

Elijah snorted. “Bullshit!”

Mack smiled. “Possibly. But at the very least he’ll bitch his ass off. And, frankly, I don’t want to hear it.”

Elijah took a short, hard swig of beer. “What’s up with him?” he asked. “Acts like he’s avoiding me.”

“Now that’s REALLY bullshit!” Mackenzie said with a laugh. “Like he’d ever avoid you!”

“Then what the fuck is going on?”

Mackenzie sighed.

“Tell me, Mack.”

Mackenzie shot him a look, half annoyed – half amused. “Persistent little fuck aren’t you.”

Elijah stood on the stool’s footrest, stretching over the bar toward Mackenzie. “Tell!” he demanded. “Or I’ll kick your ass!”

Mack snorted and gently pushed Elijah’s head back across the bar. “Dream on, wussy-boy.”

Elijah reseated himself on the barstool. “C’mon, Mack,” he said appealingly . “I know something’s bothering him. He’s acting weird!”

Mack considered Elijah silently for a moment, lips pursed in thought. Finally he spoke. “Well, you know he’s been off with Hillary.”

“Yeah, I know. I met up with him once while he was doing her road show.”

“Yeah?” Mack said, surprised. “I didn’t know that!”

Elijah grinned. “We don’t tell you everything, you know!”

Mackenzie barked out a laugh. “If you think for one fucking minute that I want notification every time you two…” he hesitated for a moment… “… meet up … think again.”

“Whatever,” Elijah said. “He seemed fine that night. Happy to be there. You know how he is, rubbing shoulders with the great, near-great, soon-to-be-great, whatever-the-fuck. He’s all into that powahhh thing.”

“That why he’s so nuts about you?” Mack asked with a smirk. “Because you’re so powerful?”

“Where Sean’s concerned, I have my own brand of power,” Elijah said with a mischievous wink.

“Way more information than I needed,” Mack replied, then continued: “In any case…”

“Yes. In any case,” Elijah said. “Did something happen while he was out with Hillary?”

“Elijah if you tell him what I’m about to tell you…”

“Oh, stop. I’m not going to tell him anything. I just want to know what’s bothering him. I came a long way to get to spend some fucking time with him, and he’s acting like I’ve got the plague!”

“Lij, he’s upset,” Mack said in a low voice. “He’s not avoiding you.”

“God damn it, Mack” Elijah growled. “What the fuck happened?”

“You know how he gets,” Mack said quietly. “He can be a ham when he’s feeling insecure. And… sometimes he goes overboard.”

“How did he go overboard?”

“I gather he was just playing the fool on stage one night…clowning around in front of Rob Reiner, who is probably the entire reason he was feeling insecure in the first damn place. And, according to him, Hillary bitched him out. Told him to settle the fuck down - ” Mack paused, considering. “… though probably not in those words.” He hesitated for a moment. "That's Sean's version of things.. for what it's worth."

Elijah sighed, his hands resting on the bar, his eyes lowered.

“And,” Mackenzie continued, “I gather they all left after the rally and didn’t invite him to join them, though they did invite Reiner.” Mack glanced up and looked knowingly into Elijah’s eyes. “And you can take a big whopping guess how he interpreted that.”

“Oh my god,” Elijah said quietly, feeling understanding flood through him in a dull aching wave. “So now he’s the biggest piece of shit alive. Right?”

“More or less, yeah,”

“He’s beating himself up.”

“You got it,” Mack said. “He thinks he made a fool out of himself in front of…” Mack hesitated dramatically then placed his hand over his heart and spoke in the rolling tones of a media announcer… “… Hillary Rodham Clinton, the next president of the United States of America.”

“Which means exactly nothing even if it were true!”

“True. But try telling him that!”

“I’m going to tell him that,” Elijah said adamantly. “If you’ll please just point me in the right direction.”

Mack jerked his thumb toward a nearby side door. “He went out that way. He was deep into his ‘I want to crawl into a hole and die’ phase so I have no clue where he ended up.”

“Give me a snifter of brandy,” Elijah said, setting his beer aside.

“For him? Or for you?” Mack asked as he poured the brandy.

Elijah took a deep swallow of the golden liquid then handed the snifter back to Mackenzie to be replenished. “Both,” he croaked, almost choking on the potent liqueur.

Mack silently refilled the snifter then pointed at the side door. “Follow the yellow brick road.”

Elijah took the brandy and walked outside, swirling the rich elixir then lifting it to his nose to smell it. He stopped a few steps outside the door and looked around. The noise of the party was dulled. He could hear crickets chirping.

After a moment he his eyes adjusted and he could see he was in a walled garden or patio of some kind. There was no one in sight. He took a slow sip of the brandy and began to walk slowly along the wall, peering into the darkness, hoping to spot Sean, but seeing nothing.

As he approached the driveway he saw a small path, barely noticeable in the gloom, that led away from the house. In the distance he could hear pounding surf and assumed the path lead to a nearby beach. The night air was chilly and a slight breeze reached him, carrying the scent of sea-brine. He stumbled over tangled brush several times before finally reaching a silvery expanse of beach. He could see the ocean beyond, its glinting whitecaps awash in moonlight. He walked toward the beach and spotted Sean at once. He was the outline of a solitary figure seated near the shoreline, silently watching the waves. Elijah approached him quietly and only spoke when he was a few feet behind him.

“You’re wearing a suit, you know, jackass.”

Sean turned toward him with a gasp of surprise.

“Not the best costume for beach sitting.”

“Who asked you?” Sean replied, turning back to the water. “You an expert on beach-wear now? Maybe I’m starting a new trend.”

Elijah sat next to him and wordlessly offered the snifter, which Sean took at once.

“Mmmm..” he said after swallowing. “Good.” He took another long sip. “And again, good.”

Elijah grabbed it back. “Hey! Leave some for me.”

Sean ignored him and turned back to the waves.

Elijah waited patiently. He knew Sean well enough to know that the last thing he could bear was silence. Sooner or later he’d have to fill it or go nuts. Elijah counted slowly… wondering how long it would take.

“Why are you here?” Sean blurted, turning to face him.

“Twenty-seven seconds,” Elijah said, grinning. “I think that’s a personal best for you.”

“Why are you here?” Sean repeated.

“You invited me here, fucker!”

“I didn’t mean that,” Sean said in a low voice. “I know I invited you here. I meant what are you doing here” He waved his arms, indicating the beach surrounding them.

Elijah took a thoughtful sip from the snifter then gave a long, probing look at the man who sat facing him. “Hey, lover! You got me on the phone not all that long ago and went on at great length about how much you wanted to see me! Well, here I am! And so far I’ve had to chase you down to even get a fucking ‘hello’.”

“Lij…” Sean began.

“If you don’t want to see me just say so!”

“God, Lij, no!” Sean whispered pleadingly, grabbing his arm. “Please don’t talk like that.”

“Fine,” Elijah said. “Then take another drink and tell me what the fuck is going on… because you’re acting like a complete wanker.”

“Ohhhh,” Sean moaned. “I was a jackass during the campaign thing. Playing the fool on stage. Being a jerk.”

“So?” Elijah said, shrugging. “What else is new? It’s a political rally, Sean. Half the people there are jerks.”

“Hillary didn’t like it,” Sean murmured dejectedly. “She slapped me down, then they all left without me. Didn’t want me around.”

“That’s the only possible explanation, right?” Elijah asked, poking Sean’s ribs with a sharp elbow. “Didn’t want you around?”

“Well, they…” Sean began.

“Couldn’t be that they just forgot. Or thought you had other plans. Or figured you’d be with your family since they were in Indiana with you. Or thought you planned to follow along later, or any one of a hundred other possible explanations. HAS to be that you’re a jackass and they didn’t want you around.”

A slow smile crept across Sean’s face.

“And so WHAT if you were showing off for Reiner! Everyone does! So you get goofy around celebrities at times. Big fucking deal, Sean. Jesus! Everybody gets goofy at times! Why is it only the end of the fucking world when it’s you doing it?”

“I never mentioned Rob Reiner, Lij,” Sean said. “Where did you get that information?”

“Ooops,” Elijah muttered, then quickly tossed down the rest of the brandy. He glanced toward Sean and turned the snifter upside-down. “We’re out of booze.”

“Whoopie-twit!” Sean growled, then tugged on the lapel of Elijah’s jacket. “How’d you know about Reiner?”

“Good guess?”

Sean scowled in disbelief. “Please.”

“I saw the picture, Sean. Whether you realize it or not, your 'pole-dancing' performance is all over the Internet.”

“Oh my god,” Sean moaned, lowering his head into his hands.

“Will you stop?”

“Elijah, I made a fool out of myself in front of the next president of the United States!”

“Well,” Elijah drawled. “… jury’s still out on that one. Personally, my money’s on Obama. But if that DID turn out to be true… do you know what it means?”

“Yeah. It means I won’t be getting an invitation to the inaugural.”

“No,” Elijah said, grabbing Sean’s hair and using it to shake his head gently. “It means, asshole, that she works for YOU!!”

Sean burst into laughter and gathered Elijah close, nuzzling his neck. “God, you’re wonderful.”

“No,” Elijah replied, tilting his head slightly to accommodate Sean’s seeking lips. “What I am is right!”

Sean shrugged, his arms tightening around Elijah’s waist. “Don’t care,” he murmured, his voice a moan.

“And not only right, but tired of waiting around to get some time with you.”

“I’m sorry, baby,” Sean muttered, leaning back a bit. “I was just feeling a little low.”

“Why do you let that kind of stuff get to you?” Elijah asked, shaking his head. “Jesus, Sean, none of it matters. In the greater scheme of things it’s all bullshit.”

Sean pressed his face against Elijah’s cheek, nuzzling. “Mmmmm…..”

“So you’re not perfect!” Elijah spouted. “Jesus, who cares? Her husband got blow jobs in the Oval Office, then lied about it on national TV. They’re the last people on Earth with the right to criticize others.”

“Well,” Sean drawled. “That was him, not her.”

“Whatever the fuck,” Elijah grumbled. “No one’s perfect. Not him. Not her. Not you. Not me.”

“Oh, I beg to differ,” Sean laughed. “You, my beloved Elijah, are perfect. At least in these eyes.”

“Oh, yeah?” Elijah challenged. “Prove it, lover boy!”

“Here?” Sean asked, laughing. “In wet sand?”

“You’re willing to play the fool on a public stage, but not on a deserted beach?” Elijah teased, pushing on Sean’s head.

Sean’s groping hand found Elijah’s zipper and after taking a moment to caress the firmness beneath it, tugged it gently down. “If Bill Clinton can get blow jobs in the Oval, I guess I can give one on a deserted beach,” he said, his head disappearing from Elijah’s view as he lowered it toward the object of his desire.

“Mmmm,” Elijah moaned. “You’ve definitely got my vote!”


End file.
